College and Career Counselor

Job Description

College and Career Counselor (24-25SY)
The Organization
Lighthouse Community Public Schools

At Lighthouse Community Public Schools we are engaged in an educational movement that goes beyond our classrooms working to disrupt inequities by providing our students and families exceptional educational opportunities every day. Grounded in our core values of community, integrity, agency, love, and social justice rooted in the EL Education Model, LCPS is a leader in fostering innovative schools achieving exceptional student outcomes where each child is at the center of their own learning. Our mission is to prepare diverse students for college, a career of their choice, and to be lifelong changemakers. Founded in 2002, LCPS operates two high-achieving K-12 public charter schoolsLighthouse and Lodestarserving over 1,600 students in East Oakland. Lighthouse is a beacon for public education and our graduates fulfill the promise of a better, brighter Oakland.

Learn more at www.lighthousecharter.org.

The Opportunity
College and Career Counselor - Competencies and Qualifications

The College & Career Counselor & Seminar Teacher at Lighthouse Community Charter is fundamental to the mission of the school, ensuring that every student has access to college and the career of his or her choice. That said, the College & Career Counselor's primary responsibility is to guide students, families, and teachers through the process of preparing students for college, applying to college, financing college, transitioning to college, graduating from college, and seeking employment. The College & Career Counselor does this primarily by running seminar-style classes with 11th and 12th graders that help students better understand their college and career options after high school and actualize their plans. Additionally, the College & Career Counselor works closely with our LCPS Director of College & Career who is the primary liaison between Lighthouse and external entities that help support the mission, including: colleges and universities, scholarship organizations and donors, internship sites and mentors, extracurricular programs and partners, testing agencies and more.

If you are inspired by our mission and vision and want to be a changemaker in students' lives here in Oakland, then please apply and join us

You will embody the following Core Competencies to be an effective change-agent:

• Be an anti-racist educator committed to educational justice as evidenced by respectful and supportive relationships, well-planned instruction, rigorous daily assessment, and daily opportunities for students to revise and refine their work.
• Facilitate cognitively engaging student-centered learning.
• Demonstrate a keen belief in and ability to create, collect and analyze achievement data to drive student learning and outcomes for all students
• Be a strong community builder and team collaborator
• Model and foster a growth mindset with agency, persistence, and flexibility
• Be a collaborative and responsible professional educator

RESPONSIBILITIES:

College & Career Seminar Teaching & Facilitation

The College/Career Counselor develops, teaches and distributes curriculum that conveys the information and skills students need to achieve the mission by:

• Teaching a College and Career Preparation Seminar Class to all 11th grade students, focusing on building student knowledge and interest in the college application process and developing career interests.
• Facilitating workshops with parents around issues related to students' college and career preparation.
• Working individually and in seminar spaces with all upperclassmen to discover their interests and goals, find an internship, develop a college list, write a personal statement, and create a budget/financial aid plan for college.
• Communicating regularly and with families and teachers about the college application and internship process.
• Publicly celebrating the college/career success of our students and alumni through displays, publications, and events such as our Senior Wall of Fame and Declaration Day.
• Keeping in touch with LCPS alumni and offering assistance to help them fulfill their college/career goals, as needed, in conjunction with the LCPS Director of College & Career Readiness.

College & Career Counseling Administration & Management

The College/Career Counselor works closely with the LCPS Director of College & Career Readiness to effectively manage the administrative components of the college application process and internship program by:

• Working with the school administration team to review and update transcripts to ensure college eligibility
• Ensuring that all seniors apply to college and that all eligible seniors apply to 4-year colleges by providing application instructions and support, feedback on college essays, SAT/ACT registration information, application and entrance exam fee waivers for all eligible students.
• Writing letters of recommendation for seniors and coordinating student requests for recommendations from other LCCS staff.
• Updating and disseminating the school's academic profile to colleges
• Organizing student visits to colleges, visits from college representatives to Lighthouse and the annual 11th grade trip to a local college fair.
• Communicating with college admission and financial aid personnel as needed to maximize outcomes.

Resources, Partnerships, Research & Data

In collaboration with our LCPS Director of College and Career Readiness:

• Leverages resources and partnerships that enhance college/career opportunities and liaising between Lighthouse and various external entities
• Researching and reaching out to colleges that are potentially a "good fit" for our students.
• Monitoring and disaggregating data from college entrance exams and placement tests.
• Recording and analyzing college application, acceptance, and attendance data of Lighthouse students.
• Keeping up-to-date on issues and trends in college admission, higher education, and testing.

Additional Duties, as assigned by Supervisor

Classroom & School Culture

• Builds and maintains classroom culture that is supportive and learning-centered, undergirded by strong management, efficient procedures and systems, but most evident in the full inclusion of African-American boys, students with trauma, and students with IEPs in the social and learning community.
• Create positive relationships by building nurturing and affirming teacher-student, student-student, and teacher-family partnerships with a focus on building a community of risk-taking, collaborative learners.

Professional Practice/Staff Culture

• Grow and contribute as an educator, colleague, learner, and community member including engaging in professional development and your own growth as a teacher in service of student learning and outcomes.
• Demonstrate advocacy, flexibility, autonomy, and collegiality.
• Demonstrates self-awareness, reflects on practice with self and others, and acts on feedback.
• Demonstrate flexibility, and ownership of our collective results.
• Administer all policies and procedures in a professional and timely manner as mandated by LCPS, and state and federal agencies (i.e., attendance records, dress code, reporting of sexual/physical abuse).

Are you ready to join an educational movement that is bigger than one classroom?

If you are excited about the opportunity to foster and facilitate a progressive growth mindset in students and engage in transformational teaching, we are actively looking for student-centered, dedicated and dynamic teachers.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

We would love to hear from you if your educational toolbox includes the following:

• B.A. or B.S. required; Master's Degree, preferred
• Appropriate California Teaching Credential or commitment and ability to acquire one (must supply unofficial transcripts to verify eligibility if do not have a valid license)
• Valid Certificate of Clearance verifying professional fitness for all CA teachers of record, required (if have never held a COC must obtain one before can be fully hired and cleared to start)
• Deep knowledge of California Common Core State Standards, student-centered, mastery-based learning, curriculum planning, and data analysis, preferred
• 2+ years teaching urban youth with transformational results, preferred
• Familiarity navigating educational platforms
• Experience teaching in a progressive school model
• Bilingual in Spanish, preferred

Environmental Requirements:

• Loud environments such as cafeterias, playgrounds, classrooms, and large professional settings
• Indoor/Outdoor adaptability to all weather conditions related to outdoor activities and or travel to field trips/school sponsored events
• Airconditioned and heated environments under fluorescent lighting.

Physical Demands:

Ability to: See and hear on a continuous basis as well as speak frequently. Sit and stand for extended periods of time. Stop, extend, kneel and reach. Lift up to 25 pounds. Walk for long periods of time. On rare occasions would need to move quickly or run over smooth to uneven surfaces indoor/outdoor. Repetitive movement of fingers and hands for keyboarding and whiteboard usage. Occasional travel to sites for PD within and outside LCPS.

SUPERVISION

This position will report to School Principal or principal's designee

TIME COMMITMENT

This position is 1.0 FTE (full-time exempt) and follows a 11-month (210 day) work year with significant student-free days for professional learning and collaboration with colleagues and interaction with families. All new 11-month instructional staff will start on July 1, 2024 (or other date as determined with supervisor approval).

Common Building Hours: All teachers are expected to maintain common building hours for their school site. These may be subject to change for the 2024-25SY:

• Lighthouse Campus Building Hours: 8:00 - 4:00 pm M, Tu, Th, Fri and 8:00-5:00 on Wednesdays for Professional Development.

OUR COMPENSATION PACKAGE
At Lighthouse Community Public Schools we take good care of our employees. We provide a competitive compensation and benefits package, including a competitive salary and generous health and retirement benefits (100% employee health coverage/50% for dependents; 8% employer-matching for retirement program; medical and dependent FSA).

TO APPLY

People of color and/or bilingual candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

Interested candidates should submit:

• Resume
• Cover letter describing your interest in this exciting position and why you are an optimal fit, including how your teaching philosophy, approach to student learning, and educational expertise would contribute to Lighthouse Community Public Schools.
• 3-5 Professional References: Name, position, phone number and email address. (Two of which should be current or previous supervisors of your role).

Application submission screening and initial phone interviews will be completed on a rolling basis. In-person interviews and performance tasks will take place on-site.

Lighthouse Community Public School is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity at all levels.

#LI-AC1

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